x
Breaking News
More () »

U.S. Olympic Committee expresses interest in bidding for Winter Olympics

LA is already hosting the summer games in 2028. Could the U.S. host a back-to-back Winter Games, too? 
USOC chairman Larry Probst during the 2018 U.S. Olympic Team media summit at the Grand Summit Hotel. (Photo: Jerry Lai, USA TODAY Sports)

Already set with its next U.S. host for the Summer Olympics, the U.S. Olympic Committee voiced support for bringing back the Winter Games on Friday.

Following its executive board meeting in Colorado Springs, the USOC leadership expressed further interest to securing the Winter Olympics either before or after Los Angeles hosts the summer event in 2028.

“I think I put a stake in the ground and said we are interested in hosting the Winter Games,” said chairman Larry Probst. “Ideally, that’s probably 2030 so there’s no confusion with the preparations for 2028. But if the (International Olympic Committee) considers the possibility of a dual awards of 2026 and 2030 as they did with ’24 and ’28, we certainly want to be in that conversation.”

The IOC reached a historic agreement with Paris and Los Angeles in September, awarding the 2024 and 2028 Games, respectively.

The decision was considered a one-off solution to the problems the IOC has faced in securing quality bids, but the possibility of a dual award could gain favor if European cities reject the chance to bid for 2026.

The Swiss government this week delayed a decision on whether to provide financial support for a bid from Sion. Two-time host Innsbruck, Austria, has prepared a bid but faces a referendum on Sunday.

Calgary and Stockholm are among cities that have expressed interest in bidding for 2026.

IOC President Thomas Bach has said he would like to see the Winter Olympics return to more traditional locations for future Games.

“To me, that suggest a location Europe and/or North America,” Probst said. “We just need to have further discussions at that level and understand what the IOC leadership has in mind for the process going forward.”

Hosting in 2026 would be complicated for the USOC, which has a joint marketing venture with the Los Angeles organizing committee that runs from 2020 to 2028. Any U.S. city looking to bid for the Winter Games couldn’t do so without L.A. signing off.

At the USOC media summit last month, LA 2028 chairman Casey Wasserman called the issue “complicated” but left the door open to a possible U.S. bid.

“There’s lots of issues, but our approach is we’ll take an open mind and listen and let that process develop and when it’s time to engage and really deeply entertain it, great,” Wasserman said in September. “Certainly, we’d love the Winter Games to come back to the United States, whether that’s 2026 or 2030 and beyond.”

The IOC changed the bidding process for 2026, creating a year-long invitation phase during which interested cities can seek feedback before committing to bidding.

But the USOC would also like more information from the IOC on its process and timing before determining its own domestic process. Last month, CEO Scott Blackmun said Denver, Salt Lake City and Reno had expressed interest in bidding.

The USOC would have to select a city by March to enter the invitation phase to bid for 2026.

Probst said the USOC would need to know more to determine if it must submit a 2026 bid city to be considered for a dual award with 2030.

“We want to be at the table for that discussion, so we also need to set up the process for any cities that are interested in potentially hosting a Games in the United States,” he said. “Plenty of work to be done, but longer term, yes, we want to bid for the Winter Games.”

Before You Leave, Check This Out